China Life scores but new deals fall

China Life Insurance (2628) recorded 34 percent growth in interim net profit to 41 billion yuan (HK$49.3 billion), but its new business value dropped 19 percent to 29.9 billion yuan from a year ago. No interim dividend was proposed.

Gross written premiums rose 3.5 percent to 442 billion yuan. But premiums from new policies fell 8.4 percent to 133.9 billion yuan, which was attributed to the impact of the pandemic and a slowdown in the release of demand.

Its gross investment yield rose 35 basis points to 5.69 percent, and a gross investment income of 117.6 billion yuan was recorded.

A 22 percent growth in the investment segment steered the net profit up, the company said. Its total assets grew 9.4 percent to 4.65 trillion from the end of 2020.

The company's total sales force was about 1.22 million, which was down 235,000 from the 1.458 million recorded at the end of 2020.

Meanwhile, AIA Group (1299) has formed a partnership with investment manager GLP to invest in the global logistics real estate industry and related opportunities.